That issue is going to have to wait behind a far more pressing and important matter: getting our state's kids back in their schools.
Wednesday, the Seahawks announced they will play at least their first three games at CenturyLink Field in Seattle in the 2020 NFL season without fans because of the coronavirus pandemic. The team has said throughout the pandemic they are taking their lead from state and local public-health guidance.
Thursday, The News Tribune's Alexis Krell asked Gov. Jay Inslee what the chances are the Seahawks host fans for any of their eight regular-season home games through the end of December.
Does Washington's governor foresee any change in restrictions in the state and specifically King County related to the COVID-19 virus by October, when the Seahawks' third home game is, against Minnesota?
"Well, it's not something that we've discussed recently," Inslee said during a virtual news conference Thursday, talking through a mask in Olympia.
The governor then asked John Wiesman, the state secretary of health, to add to his answer.
"I think our priority really is getting our (COVID-19 transmission) rates down to that 25 per (100,000 people in the state) that we've said, so we can get kids back in school," Wiesman said. "I really think that's our main priority as we are looking at this.
"And as we are able to achieve that, then we may be able to look at other things that are also reasonable."
Inslee issued a directive in June that allows pro sports practices and games in the state, but without fans attending.
"So, yeah, the governor and I haven't had a conversation about this recently," Wiesman said. "But I know that we are really focused about wanting to return our kids to school, and that's where we are really putting our energy."
Two weeks ago, Inslee said "the vast majority of (school) districts" in Washington should and would be starting this school year with remote, online learning for students in kindergarten through 12th grade. That's because most of the state still has a high or moderate risk to the spread of COVID-19 through in-person instruction. This month, 25 of the state's 39 counties are in the high-risk category for COVID-19 transmission. That includes the most populous counties of King, Pierce and Snohomish.
King County and Seattle for months have been in Phase 2 of the state's four-phase Safe Start plan to return to normal business and life. King remains one of the more restricted counties in the country. It would take getting to Phase 4 per the state's guidelines for the Seahawks to have fans at games this fall.
"As we are thinking about our restrictions and our lives, our goal is to get our kids back to on-sight instruction," Inslee said.
"And if it's a choice between some of our activities that would increase the infection rate and getting kids to school, back to school, getting them back to school really has to be the priority.
The questions to Inslee about the Seahawks and fans at games this years and his and Wiesman's answers begin at the 38:20 mark below:
Seattle is scheduled to host the New England Patriots on Sept. 20, the Dallas Cowboys on Sept. 27 and the Minnesota Vikings Oct. 11.
"After careful consideration, we have made the difficult determination to play at least our first three home games (Sept. 20, Sept. 27 and Oct. 11) without fans in attendance," the Seahawks said in a statement Wednesday. "While CenturyLink Field has become the best home field advantage in the league thanks to the energy and passion of the 12s, the health and safety of all of our fans, players and staff remains our top priority. While we are hopeful that conditions will improve as the season moves forward, we will continue to follow the lead of public health and government officials to make future decisions about having fans in attendance."
So much for one of the loudest, most-impacting home-field advantages in the NFL.
"We would definitely miss our fans, no question," Seahawks general manager John Schneider said when he and the team were staring at this possibility back in June.
The Seahawks are having a mock game inside CenturyLink Field Saturday and another one Aug. 26. Those are to give the team a feel of what a real game in an empty home stadium will feel like this season. In recent years the team has had its annual mock-game scrimmages at local high-school stadiums, such as last summer in Bothell in front of thousands of fans.
The first time the Seahawks could possibly have paying customers inside their 69,000-seat home stadium, in a reduced capacity, would be Nov. 1 against the defending NFC-champion San Francisco 49ers.
The team added: "If conditions improve and it is determined that it is safe for fans to attend games under a limited capacity, the Seahawks will reach out to season ticket holders who have requested to continue receiving game-day details."
But fans at any games in Seattle this calendar year remains a long shot.
The NFL so far is leaving decisions on fans in stands this season up to each team and its local government and public-health policy.
This week the Atlanta Falcons announced they will have no fans at their home games through the end of September. That includes the Seahawks' opener inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta Sept. 13.
Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said last week his team intends to have fans at their home games. Texas currently allows half capacity at stadium for pro sports, if that meshes with league policies.
Forbes has estimated the NFL could lose 38 percent of its revenue -- $5.5 billion in sales of tickets, concessions, sponsors, parking and at team stores -- if it plays games in stadiums with no fans in them this season.
Using team revenue data from 2018, Forbes said the Seahawks were 16th, right in the middle of the league, in in-stadium revenue at $156 million of its $439 million in total revenue. That would be a loss of 35.5% of its total revenue if Seattle doesn't have fans at its games this season. (The majority of team revenues come from the NFL's national television contracts, which are worth more than $7 billion annually).
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